Art activism

He was the first Indian national Go Karting Champion in 2002. However, speed is not the only driving force for 37-year-old Rajiv Patel. Passion for art turned this financial consultant into a collector.

"Art cuts through cultural barriers and connects people across the globe. My love for it took me to various places in India and abroad. Every artist I have interacted with has a vision, which was bound by the cultural backdrop of the city that they live in and their experiences in life," says Patel.

What fascinates Patel is that an artist has a language of his own that conveys many things through his respective artwork. "In my upcoming shows I am bringing in many global artists. Through their work we'll question development in the context of real issues. Issues with regard to prohibition that hardly raise huge concerns now, but they will certainly be big issues in the future," he says.

Patel's belief in art for a purpose made him start a gallery in Vadodara. He is actively using art as a medium to kick-start a state-wide activism against the prohibition laws in Gujarat. "Art is a non-violent mode of creative expression and an important tool to change societal perceptions. It's an amalgamation of performance, films, painting, new media, posters, sculptures and writing. Hence, it's the best way to connect to the masses," says Patel.

For furthering the cause, Patel is planning to take his poster exhibition 'We don't need prohibition in Gujarat' (held between October 29 to November 29 in Vadodara, wherein over 20 poster illustrations were displayed) to different cities. Through the art-work, artists tried to highlight the need to do away with prohibition in Gujarat. A signature campaign was also conducted along with the poster show. "Besides Ahmedabad and other cities, the show will also travel to USA, UK and Canada. Initially, it was difficult to convince artists to be part of such a bold show, but thankfully it has worked out well so far," he says.

Ask him about the support from the art fraternity and his answer is as expected, "Initial support was slow. But now, it's growing. I am getting a lot of international support. Problem is that a lot of people fear that the system may implicate them in dummy cases," he says. If it meets with success, then Patel would be happy that he would have started a unique campaign, not initiated in the last 50 years.

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